LB Whitney Mercilus wants to clinch AFC South in front of Texans home crowd

Houston Texans linebacker Whitney Mercilus sees a special opportunity Sunday to clinch the AFC South in front of the home crowd, and he hopes to deliver on the chance in Week 17 versus the Jacksonville Jaguars.

“It’s something that we look forward to each year,” Mercilus told reporters Wednesday. “We’ve done it before and doing it in front of the home crowd would be great, awesome. I know everybody would be excited, especially when we’re heading into the postseason.”

The Texans had the chance to lock up the AFC South at NRG Stadium with a win over the Indianapolis Colts in Week 14. However, the Texans were unable to stop the connection between quarterback Andrew Luck and receiver T.Y. Hilton that torched Houston for 10 passes for 199 yards. Since then, the Texans have won one of their past three games, which has put added pressure on the season finale to beat the 5-10 Jaguars.

“We understand this is a very important game — not that any other game was not important — but we’ve got a lot to lock up here as far as the AFC South and all of that,” said Mericlus, who has 38 combined tackles, 3.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles on the season. “Especially with Jacksonville coming in here, home game as well, in front of the fans for the last time as far as the regular season goes, it’s going to be high energy.”

The Jaguars defeated the Miami Dolphins 17-7 at Hard Rock Stadium in Week 16. Quarterback Blake Bortles won back his job, at least for one week, as starter Cody Kessler struggled with a shoulder contusion and inconsistent play against the Dolphins.

“We understand the Jags are going to be coming in here trying to get a W, guys who are playing for their jobs, stuff like that, so we understand that,” Mercilus said.

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